A Change of Heart
by Ponygirl7
Summary: Taking some of the best Robin/Maria scenes, I have added delicious little details that any ardent lover of this pair will savor like sweet gingerbread.


**A Change of Heart** **A Moonacre Fanfiction**

"Goodbye," Robin turned. "Robin, please!" Maria pleaded desperately. Robin turned back, his dark, bird-like gaze meeting Maria's imploring eyes. "I promised I'd listen to you, and I have." He shrugged. That was that. He was doing her a favor already by not taking her back to his father. "Robin, you have to help me, you _have_ to!" Maria cried fervently. Robin wheeled around to face her, grabbing her shoulders. "You are a _Merryweather_!" he had been taught to hate Merryweathers from his childhood. Wrolf growled, and Robin reluctantly took his hands off Maria's shoulders. "Right now I have to kill you," he muttered.

He drew his knife. Maria looked straight at him, then knelt and bowed her head. "Do it, then." She replied quietly, unafraid. Robin raised the wicked-looking blade above his head. His father's prized falcon screeched approvingly, breaking the dead silence of the woods. Robin looked down at the girl kneeling submissively in front of him, his hands shaking on the knife.

Maria waited. Without Robin's help, there was no way to save the valley. It was already too late. There was nothing she could do. It'd be better to die now than wait for her life to be ended later. But the knife would not come.

Robin slowly brought the knife down. "I—I can't." he whispered. Maria looked up. Robin's face burned shamefully. The falcon screeched again, and flapped off, probably to report all this to Coeur De Noir. "Robin?" Maria looked up. Robin shook his head, eyes fixed on his muddy black boots. "I can't kill you." He murmured. Maria stood, her soft brown eyes searching his face. "Why?" she asked carefully.

Robin sheathed his blade, exhaling harshly. "It's just not right." He looked up at the canopies of the trees, wondering how he could possibly explain to this girl. "All my life I've been told to hate, to kill Merryweathers. I've been taught that they are a proud group of immoral snobs, greedy and selfish. I wanted to do something special to please my father. He never liked me. I thought perhaps capturing or killing you would be the answer, and he'd actually accept me as his son. But here I am, letting you go. No doubt my father's already coming out here to kill _me_ now."

Maria wasn't exactly sure how to respond. "But I can't just _leave_ ," she protested. "I need you! You're the only person who can help me."

"Look, I'm letting you go," Robin looked at her, irritated. "And you're asking for more?"

"I'm _demanding_ more!" Maria exclaimed. "If you don't help me, I'll be as lost as I was before, and we and our families will die! Don't you see? You don't _have_ a choice!" Robin sighed. "You've got a determined spirit, Princess. I admire that." He looked at her curiously. "What do you want me to do?"

Robin's nimble finger knotted a blue silken ribbon around a branch, eyes alert for any sign of danger. He jogged to catch up with Maria. "What was that?" Maria queried, looking back to the ribbon. Robin trudged on. "False trail." He replied vaguely. Maria squinted. "What were you doing with one of my ribbons in your pocket?" Robin's cheeks reddened slightly, but not from the exertion of walking. Maria's lips curved up slightly at the ends amusedly.

"They're in this tree that is very distinctive," Maria explained as they walked. "It has massive roots twisting around a big dark hollow—" "I know where that is," Robin interrupted. Maria halted abruptly and turned to face him in surprise. She'd known that Robin was a Moonacre forest expert, but still…he had surprised her pleasantly. Robin rested a black boot on a lifted root.

"Suppose, for a moment, I do decide to help you," Robin began. "And suppose we actually _manage_ to find the pearls. What then?" he looked up into Maria's eyes. She hesitated for a moment, transfixed by his dark, deliciously mysterious gaze. Then she realized he'd asked her a question. "Well, we…we return the pearls to the sea, and then we—" "You know, my father's coming after you," Robin reminded her. He immediately felt badly because he'd said 'you', not 'us'. He had inwardly vowed to help Maria to the best of his abilities, but that didn't mean she exactly had to know.

"It's just a matter of finding them before he finds me." Maria declared bravely, looking off into the distance. Robin looked admiringly into her face. She was absolutely resolved on this mission. No doubt she was quite aware of the many possible dangers and threats, and yet here she stood, confident and dauntless.

Robin stood, and Maria turned her eyes back to him. "They're not finding you, Princess, not if I can help it." He said warmly. Maria smiled gratefully. She had _such_ a great smile. "Thank you, Robin De Noir." She reached up, pulled his black bowler hat down over his eyes, and laughed. "Hey, hey, _respect_ the hat." Robin set it straight daintily. Maria's giggle died down. "When we fix this curse, I'm going to buy you a nice new suit." She looked him up and down appraisingly.

Robin gave her a side smile. Maria loved the way his lips curved upward tauntingly. He was _so_ annoyingly gorgeous. Maria realized with a little bit of shock that she'd been staring at him. Robin stepped forward and slipped an arm around her waist, drawing her closer to him. Their faces were inches away. "I'd like that," he whispered. He could smell her breath, sweet like roses. Without thinking, he closed the remaining space between them by pressing his lips to hers. For a moment, there was no one but him and Maria. Everything felt so perfect, so right. He never wanted it to end.

When Maria pulled away, she could feel her cheeks flushing. Her lips tingled, and her eyes were bright with excitement. Robin had a million thoughts flying through his head, but he didn't really care. He let his eyes dance with amusement and mischief.

"I may also get you some breath freshener," Maria added with a playful grin. Robin raised an eyebrow. "Oh, come on, I'm not that bad," he protested. Maria shrugged. "I suppose not." She planted a kiss on his lips. "Just for good measure," she explained. Robin's ears were buzzing. Nothing could stop him now; he would search the ends of the earth to find those pearls for Maria. Maria felt renewed with vigor and energy. She _would,_ with Robin's help, find the pearls and save Moonacre. She felt sure of it. He laced his fingers through hers, and they walked on through the forest, hand in hand.


End file.
